It is common to apply tags to plants prior to their sale. The purpose of the tags may be for plant identification, to describe plant care requirements or any other desired information. Many tags are applied at a wholesale nursery or grower prior to shipment to a retailer. Still other tags are placed on the plants by the retailer prior to sale to a consumer.
The tags employed must be weather resistent. For this reason, the majority are formed of vinyl plastic, styrene plastic or other suitable plastic form. A basic tag design is one with a simple hole punched in it which is attached to the plant through the hole by a wire or clip. Other tags have nonlinear cuts or slots formed into the tag opening into a hole. A stem or other rigid part of the plant is then guided through the slot into the hole. The tags secured to the plants by a wire or clip suffer the disadvantage of requiring the person applying the tag to expend relatively substantial effort to place the tag on the plant. The other tags noted are much simpler to apply and reduce the labor necessary. However, they often fall off of the plant.
One tag was developed which included an area for applying information and a flap. The flap is folded over to double thickness and glued. Aligned holes are formed through the double layer of the flap and nonlinear cuts are formed extending from the folded edge of the flap to the holes. The stem or branch of the plant is slid between the slots and into the holes. The slots in each layer are not aligned so that overlapping portions of the flaps form a self-locking feature. While this tag has several advantages over the prior tags, the labor and cost in gluing the flap greatly reduces the attractiveness of the design.
Therefore, a need has been shown for a tag which reduces manufacturing costs and reduces the labor necessary to apply the tag. Yet, the tag must be one that provides a sure locking mechanism that will remain on the plant under reasonable conditions. Finally, the tag is preferably positioned on the plant for ready observation by the potential purchaser.